March egg production climbs in March

WASHINGTON – Egg production totaled 7.86 billion during March 2012, a slight increase from 2011, according to the US Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS).

Production included 6.80 billion table eggs and 1.06 billion hatching eggs, of which 981 million were broiler-type and 78 million were egg-type, NASS said. The total number of layers during March averaged 340 million, down slightly from the year-ago period. March egg production per 100 layers advanced 1 percent to 2,313 eggs.

All layers on April 1, 2012, totaled 341 million, a slight decrease from 2011, according to NASS. The 341 million layers consisted of 285 million layers producing table or market type eggs, 52.1 million layers producing broiler-type hatching eggs, and 3.09 million layers producing egg-type hatching eggs, NASS said. Rate of lay per day on April 1 averaged 75.2 eggs per 100 layers, an increase of 1 percent from April 1, 2011.

Egg-type chicks hatched during March 2012 declined 7 percent to 40.6 million compared to March 2011, according to NASS. Eggs in incubators totaled 39.3 million on April 1, a decrease of 5 percent compared to the year-ago period.

Broiler-type chicks hatched during March totaled 764 million, down 4 percent from March 2011, according to NASS. Eggs in incubators declined 5 percent to 614 million on April 1 compared to the year-ago period.
Leading breeders placed 6.73 million broiler-type pullet chicks for future domestic hatchery supply flocks during March, down 5 percent from March 2011, according to NASS.

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